Application of ultrasonic clamp-on flow meters for in situ tests of billing meters in district heating systems

Three methods of using ultrasonic flow meters for the purpose of testing small- and medium-sized billing flow meters in district heating subscriber stations in situ were investigated. Four subscriber stations, six billing flow meters, and three ultrasonic clamp-on meters were part of the investigation. The obtained results show that clamp-on meters have measurement accuracy problems on the ordinary steel piping in the subscriber stations. When using well defined pipes mounted in series with the billing flow meters the results are clearly better; provided that the flow rates exceed a Reynolds number of approximately 10 000. Ln this flow region, billing flow meter deviations > +/- 5% can be detected. A flow rate below this Reynolds number renders the method less reliable. The useful flow range is extended when using calibration data from the clamp-on meter to correct the measured data, making it possible to determine deviations > +/- 10% in flow rates below a Reynolds number of 10 000. The investigation also showed that not all clamp-on meters are suited for this type of in situ test. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.